Veteran point guard Isaiah Thomas and guard/forward Justin Anderson have been added to the Team USA roster ahead of the FIBA World Cup Qualifying tournament, per Marc J. Spears of The Undefeated.
Most of the rest of the roster is made up of players whose greatest experience comes in the G League (see below).
Thomas, 32, is 5-fooot-9 and appeared in just three games last season, all with the Pelicans. He spent 2019-20 with the Wizards, his best recent season, averaging 12.2 points and 3.7 assists.
He worked out with members of the Lakers during the offseason, including LeBron James and Russell Westbrook, though that was before LA brought back point guard Rajon Rondo.
Thomas also worked out with the Mavericks during the offseason, and had also been linked to the Celtics. He averaged an Eastern Conference-leading 28.9 points with Boston during the 2017-18 season before suffering a major hip injury in the playoffs.
He has since played for the Cavaliers, Pelicans, Wizards, Lakers and Nuggets and is currently an unrestricted free agent.
Anderson, 28, is 6-6 and has spent time with the Mavericks, 76ers, Hawks and Nets from 2015-2020. He too is a free agent.
Training camp for the U.S. is scheduled for Nov. 20-25 at the University of Houston. Below is the originally announced roster, before the news of Thomas and Anderson:
- Jordan Bell (Santa Cruz Warriors/Oregon)
- Brian Bowen II (Iowa Wolves)
- Josh Gray (Long Island Nets/LSU)
- Shaq Harrison (Delaware Blue Coats/Tulsa)
- DaQuan Jeffries (College Park Skyhawks/Tulsa)
- B.J. Johnson (Lakeland Magic/LaSalle)
- Orlando Johnson (free agent/UC Santa Barbara)
- Luke Kornet (Maine Celtics/Vanderbilt)
- Frank Mason III (South Bay Lakers/ Kansas)
- Chasson Randle (free agent/Stanford)
- Zavier Simpson (Oklahoma City Blue/Michigan)
- Emanuel Terry (Stockton Kings/Lincoln Memorial)
Team USA will be coached by former NBA coach Jim Boylen, with Othella Harrington and Ty Ellis acting as assistants.
The U.S. will participate in the first competition window of 2021-23 FIBA World Cup Qualifying games, which will be played in a bubble format in Chihuahua, Mexico. The Americans face Cuba on Nov. 28 before going up against host Mexico on Nov. 29.
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